Canadian healthcare authorities are planning for a resurgence of coronavirus (Covid-19) cases this fall, even as some parts of the country witness a spike related to “fatigue” related to precautionary restrictions among the youth.

New modelling released by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) underscores that point, as it noted, “We are planning for a reasonable worst case scenario comprised of a large ‘Fall Peak’ followed by ongoing ‘Peak & Valleys’ in which resource demands intermittently exceed the health and/or public health system’s capacity to manage.”

Those peaks and valleys are expected to continue into January 2022. However, the PHAC also stated that there may be the scenario of a “slow burn” where cases are kept controllable and do not stress the healthcare system. Canada has so far recorded 121,523 confirmed cases related to the Covid-19 pandemic, including 9020 fatalities.

Canada’s chief public health officer Dr Theresa Tam told reporters that “continuing to build up capacity” while “urging all Canadians to continue with public health practices will give us the best chance of keeping the epidemic on a slow burn, while preparing us in the event of a need to rapidly ramp up response measures for possible larger resurgence.”

Worryingly, it stated, “Since early July, the highest incidence of Covid-19 has been reported among individuals aged 20 to 39 years.” This has been attributed to “fatigue” within younger demographics and a spike in cases in provinces like British Columbia has been connected to house parties and increased socialising among the young.

This trend has led to authorities trying to get influencers to send out the message to young Canadians. In an audio posted in Twitter, Vancouver-born Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds said, “Young people are partying. Which is of course dangerous. What they probably don’t know is that thousands of people are not just getting sick from coronavirus, they are dying from it too.”

Another factor that could contribute to the rise in Covid-19 cases is opening up of various sectors of the economy, as the PHAC stated, “Increases in infection rates are expected as we continue to support economic and social activities, even with appropriate controls in place.”